🧀 Telemea de Ibăneşti

Telemea de Ibăneşti is a Romanian brined cheese made by acid coagulation of milk from indigenous cows reared in the Gurghiu Valley. The name is protected in the EU as a PDO (eAmbrosia PDO-RO-01182; entered in the register by Implementing Regulation (EU) 2016/365). The production area comprises the municipalities of Gurghiu, Hodac and Ibănești in Mureș county.

The milk comes from extensively farmed healthy cows. They graze for at least six months a year and in winter are fed hay from the area, with no concentrated feed. The milk is set with microbial rennet, and the cheese is salted in brine drawn from the salt water well in Orșova, which the specification says is richer in calcium and magnesium than brine made from drinking water and salt. Rearing, milking, brine, processing, salting and maturation all take place in the area.

The cheese is a compact, firm, smooth and buttery mass, white to slightly yellowish, in blocks of 0.3-1.0 kg (square base) or 0.3-0.7 kg (rectangular base). The taste is slightly sweet and sour and slightly salty, with a marked aroma of mountain pasture. Moisture is below 62% and fat in dry matter below 38%; calcium is at least 400 mg and magnesium at least 35 mg per 100 g.

It is sold as fresh (proaspătă), which can be eaten 24 hours after making, or mature (maturată), matured for at least 20 days. The blocks are packed in vacuum bags or in drums with brine and carry a label with the words 'Telemea de Ibănești' and Protected Designation of Origin. The specification cites evidence of this cheese in the local gastronomic tradition dating back to the 17th century.